Canadian universities wrestle with pervasive ‘rape culture’

Douglas Quan, Postmedia News09.10.2013

UBC Sauder school of Business graffiti: Long before controversial frosh-week chants seeming to endorse non-consensual sex surfaced this past week at the University of British Columbia and St. Mary’s University in Halifax, post-secondary institutions across Canada were wrestling with what many student leaders and educators say is a pervasive “rape culture.”

Related

Long before controversial frosh-week chants seeming to endorse non-consensual sex surfaced this past week at the University of British Columbia and St. Mary’s University in Halifax, post-secondary institutions across Canada were wrestling with what many student leaders and educators say is a pervasive “rape culture.”

It is a culture, they say, that excuses or tolerates sexual violence and is fuelled by the “hyper-sexualization” of women and men — the notion that women are always sexually available and men are always ready for sex.

“I know there are naysayers who love lobbing rocks at the ivory tower. … But I’m in the thick of it,” said Janni Aragon, a professor specializing in gender and politics at the University of Victoria.

The chants cannot be dismissed as the actions of young adults just trying to have some fun, she said.

“What we have here is a teachable moment,” she said. “I don’t think we can get to a place where we’re talking about this “ ‘too much.’”

Judging from the swift reaction to the recent chanting episodes, university administrators seem to agree.

Officials at UBC and St. Mary’s have condemned the chants, which included the lyrics “We like ‘em young” … “Y is for your sister” … “U is for under age.” They have promised sensitivity training for student leaders, even possible disciplinary action.

At Memorial University in Newfoundland, school officials promised to investigate after it came to light that engineering students had given out beer mugs featuring a scantily clad woman and the words “If she’s thirsty, give her the D.”

The “D” represents the first letter of a slang term for penis.

These incidents did not surprise Andrew Bretz, a University of Guelph researcher specializing in the study of women in Shakespeare’s plays.

Last year, when he read a Facebook post by a student reciting a chant depicting a male fantasy about rape, he took to his blog to express his sadness and to question the value of his teaching.

“What is the point of teaching these kids about sexual violence when they can only rabbit back the party line and then go off to use their creative energies to further a rape culture?” he asked.

In an interview Tuesday, Bretz said there is a perception that universities are crawling with liberal-minded students who like to test boundaries and change things. But in reality, he said, these young adults, having grown up in a highly patriarchal world that reinforces the notion of women as subordinate and men as aggressive.

“By the time they get here they’re deeply enmeshed in sexual politics that is incredibly binary and conservative,” he said, and many don’t break out of that “conservative mould.”

Educators at the University of Alberta in Edmonton earlier this year had to confront similar questions after posters showed up on campus parodying an anti-rape campaign.

The original poster campaign, directed at young men, featured the tagline “Don’t be that guy.” One poster read: “Just because she’s drunk doesn’t mean she wants to f**k.”

The parody posters, posted by a men’s activist group, featured the tagline “Don’t be that girl.” One poster read: “Just because you regret a one night stand, doesn’t mean it wasn’t consensual.”

The counter-campaign was criticized for blaming victims and for implying that women lie about sexual assaults.

University and student officials said Tuesday they are encouraged that there is a national discussion happening right now about sexual violence and said they are always finding new ways to deliver an old message.

At York University in Toronto, the campus Centre for Human Rights recently invited former NFL and CFL quarterback-turned-social activist Don McPherson to address students about gender roles and issues surrounding respect and consent in dating.

The centre also teamed up with a design studies professor and her students to spread the message about rape culture using an unconventional medium: comic strips.

“We’re trying to send a message that consent is like breathing — you can’t do without,” said Noa Ashkenazi, a sexual harassment prevention educator at the centre.

But the message, she said, can’t be delivered in a way that instills fear in students because that will just turn them away.

At the Canadian Federation of Students, national chairperson Jessica McCormick said it was disheartening to hear some first-year students in the past week seeming to downplay the controversial chants.

“We aren’t speaking up about them and calling them out for what they are. These aren’t sex chants, these are rape chants,” she said.

The federation has been distributing new awareness materials that expand on the “No Means No” campaign, issuing buttons and posters that say “Not Now Means No,” “Let’s Just Go To Sleep Means No,” and “Don’t Touch Me Means No.”

Kristina Kuffel, president of the engineering society at Guelph University, said student leaders recently led new students in a “sanitized” version of a standard student-engineering song, Godiva’s Hymn.

The sanitized version’s chorus includes the lines: “We are, we are, we are the Engineers/We can, we can, fix anything with gears.” The unsanitized version has many references to drinking.

Student leaders have to be “hypersensitive” to the possibility of offending someone, she said. Sexual jokes that degrade women, and men, have no place in orientation parties, even if they are part of tradition.

“I understand tradition is really important and often was a good way to create morale,” she said.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Saskatoon loves its Christmas lights. The Enchanted Forest draws thousands of vehicles each week. The late Bob Hinitt worked for months building his light display, which drew thousands of cars each year to Wiggins Avenue. And Scott Lambie on Clinkskill Drive has continued the tradition with more than 70,000 dancing lights (up from 50,000 last […]

When it comes to gift giving, they say it’s the thought that counts. But many are wondering if Mayor Drew Dilkens was thinking at all when he gave Olympic superstar Michael Phelps — whose battles with booze are well known — a big bottle of Canadian Club whisky.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.